In re K.W. CA2/8

Filed 3/24/23 In re K.W. CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS

California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION EIGHT

In re K.W., a Person Coming B321524 Under the Juvenile Court Law. ______________________________ Los Angeles County LOS ANGELES COUNTY Super. Ct. No. 18CCJP07954A DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES,

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

P.W.,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Mary E. Kelly, Judge. Reversed. William D. Caldwell, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Amir Pichvai, for Plaintiff and Respondent. ____________________

A mother appeals the termination of parental rights over her daughter, K.W., on the basis of improper inquiry and notice under the Indian Child Welfare Act (25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.) and related California law (Welf. & Inst. Code § 224 et seq.) (the Act). We reverse due to improper further inquiry. Section citations are to the Welfare and Institutions Code. I The mother has diagnoses of schizophrenia and psychosis. She was in a psychiatric hospital during the final months of her pregnancy. K.W. was born in December 2018. Shortly after, a juvenile court granted an expedited removal order. The Department then filed a section 300 petition that alleged K.W. was at risk of serious harm due to the mother’s mental and emotional problems. The Department’s detention report said the Department did not know whether the Act applied because the mother was not capable of providing a statement. The Department interviewed a maternal aunt and the maternal grandmother in December 2018, but there is no evidence it asked them about Indian ancestry. The Department identified the maternal grandfather as one T.W. The Department tried to call him three times, but the line would disconnect and the calls would fail. The mother said she did not know the identity of K.W.’s father. She also told a social worker the father was a celebrity musician and told a therapist the father was a different celebrity musician. The court held a detention hearing on December 17, 2018. No one mentioned the Act. The Department interviewed the maternal grandmother again in January 2019. The Department later said in a report: